PARIS (France) - The party is underway in Paris after France won a dramatic roller-coaster Semi-Final 81-75 in overtime against Belgium to reach the title game of the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament. In a pulsating game of epic runs for both teams, the hosts had been down by 15 points at one stage and thought they had found the momentum they needed to get the job done in regulation.
But a late triple by Emma Meesseman forced the extra period and France had to wait a little longer to seal the deal.
They will step out in the Olympic Final for a second time, having won silver at London 2012 and once again they will have an appointment with USA in the showpiece game. Belgium might have to get over a chunk of heartbreak, but they can still make it a tournament to remember with a maiden Olympic medal when they face Australia in a fight for bronze.
This was also the first overtime game at the Olympics in the knockout phase for 24 years.
Turning point
Belgium posted a staggering 25-2 run across the end of the second quarter and into the third period. France were on the ropes and it felt like the game might be drifting away from them.
However, down 46-33, it was a triple from Iliana Rupert that sparked a 15-5 comeback run.
After that, it was a whole new game and while there were many more important moments, none of those would have happened without this earlier revival,
Game heroes
Who else? It was Gabby Williams who was the hero in overtime with 9 points to ice the game for her country. She finished with 18 points in total - her highest ever tally at the Games.
This was more of a team performance by France as their collective presence managed to dig out victory. Valeriane Ayayi and Iliana Rupert stepped up, with the former registering 17 points and Rupert having her best game of the competition with 15 points and 7 boards.
Stats don't lie
'Second chance points' - the joint-leading scorer for France with 18. Yes, the Cats gave up far too many offensive rebounds and 19 was an eye-watering number for them. France did a great job punishing them and it was an absolutely monumental 'X-Factor' in a game of this magnitude.
They also hammered Belgium in bench scoring with 29-8.
Bottom Line
Like their opponents, France were up and down. They had that period when they were lifeless and on the wrong end of that monster run by the Cats. But something clicked and as they came back, the energy inside Bercy Arena was palpable, with the French players feeding off it.
There were lots of smaller contributions that pooled together to get this win. They did a great job on the boards and contained the main Belgian dangers pretty much as well as they could. Now they have the chance to push the USA like possibly no other team has been able to do so far.
In a game of wild swings scoring-wise, Belgium also had some huge variations in the way they played as well. There were like the FIBA Women's EuroBasket champions at some points and in others, they looked out of sorts. Especially in terms of their moving of the ball and ability to fast break. A lot of that was down to France and their defense.
With Meesseman's late intervention, it looked like they might have wrested the initiative away from France, but it proved to be a false dawn. Now the Cats must re-charge and try to finish with that first Olympic medal they would so love to take on the short trip home.
They said
"I would prefer a game like that, than one won by 30 points any day. These are the moments that you dream of when you are a kid and the ones that you work hard for. I absolutely loved it. It's game of runs, it's the Olympics and wild stuff happens. You just have to keep a cool head." France forward, Gabby Williams
"It was intense but we are a special group and I think staying together was the most important thing for us and we did it tonight. The crowd] was really special and it helped us a lot. We just want to say thank you. We all know USA are the best and with the best players in the world, but we have nothing to lose and will play our part - we will see." French guard, Marine Johannes.
"We know to play this level it is hard when the French game can count on 12 players. I think we can be proud of what we did. I think we played some good basketball but 19 offensive rebounds for the French team and 22 turnovers for us, it's hard to win a Semi-Final. We have to learn and switch our mindset because we have to stay positive and keep the heads up for the game against Australia on Sunday." Belgium head coach, Rachid Meziane.
"It was a tough one. We were so close and I wasn't easy because with the crowd they have a sixth man. It was so physical and a difficult game for us to manage. There is still a Plan B for us (with bronze) and that is the beauty of basketball." Belgium guard, Julie Vanloo.
Quick notes
- This was the first elimination game going into overtime since 2000 when Brazil beat Korea in the 3rd place game (84-73); it was the first ever semi-final decided in overtime. This was France’s fourth victory in overtime games at the Olympics, being undefeated in such fixtures in the competition.
- France have qualified for the gold medal game for the second time in the Olympics, with the first being in 2012; this will be the first time that both Men and Women’s title game will be disputed by the same two countries. - France grabbed 19 offensive rebounds in tonight’s game, the second most for Les Bleus in a single game at the Olympics (22 v Belarus in 2016); these were the most offensive rebounds ever allowed by Belgium in a game at the Olympics. - Gabby Williams scored 18 points in tonight’s game, her most ever at the Olympics; she made all of her seven attempted free-throws, after never scoring more than four in a single game in the competition. - Emma Meesseman made her fourth double-double at the Olympics, the second most of any player since she debuted in the competition in Tokyo 2020 (A’Ja Wilson, five double-doubles in that period). This was her third game with 15+ points, 10+ rebounds and 5+ assists at the Olympics, while no other player has had multiple such games.
FIBA